The First to Fall ⚢

𝐬𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 • 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐚

A long night of sleep is the perfect remedy after spending a day draining my fragile social battery, which is why not being able to sleep is the worst possible thing that could be happening to me right now. And when there's no water in the dorm to drink and no sweets to snack on, the situation just keeps on getting worse.

I grab my keys and leave in a hurry, thankful for the vending machines in the lobby, but frustration quickly bubbles in my chest when I see the machine is cash only. The only cash I ever carry on me always comes in bills bigger than five, which are the exact kind of bills it refuses to accept. Barington is supposed to be a big city university; shouldn't the vending machines at least take Apple Pay?

The warm tint of the wall lamps dimly light the path back from the lobby to the front door of my dorm, and it truly feels like the walk of shame. Not only am I completely restless, but now I'm also waterless and cookieless and overall joyless. And when I open the door to the dorm, I'm prepared to tiptoe back into my bedroom to grab some cash from my locked desk drawer, until a figure in the corner nearly sends me into a heart attack.

"Holy shit!" I screech louder than preferred. I can practically feel my soul leave my body for a short second before my eyes adjust and I realize the figure is just Aspen on the sofa, snacking on a grape Uncrustable.

She glances over to see me leaning over the tiny dining table, still trying to catch my breath. "Sorry?" she says.

I press my hand to my temple. "It's fine."

Despite my response, she doesn't look away just yet, even though she's clearly watching a movie of some sort. The scenes play out on the screen, but her expression just remains a mix of judgment and concern.

"Why are you still up?" I try to break the silence. "Don't you have class tomorrow?"

"Don't you?"

I roll my eyes and head into the bedroom to grab the cash. When I come back out, Aspen stares at me again.

"What?" I ask.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm getting snacks, is that okay with you?" I know my voice comes out a little snappy, and part of me feels bad for it. But the other part is so damn hangry.

After a short moment of quiet, she shuts her laptop and starts to stand up.

"What now?"

"I'm coming too," she says.

I scoff, starting to open the door. "Usually people ask before inviting themselves places."

"It's the vending machine, not a wedding," she says. "Also, I don't care."

I swing the door open as quietly as I can muster before stepping out into the cool midnight air. The moon whispers on the sidewalk as I wait begrudgingly for Aspen to get some cash from her bag, though I want to leave her in the room for making me wait so long. When she finally joins me outside, I start walking immediately.